Manchester Barton 29/04/2025 EGCB
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Manchester Barton 29/04/2025 EGCB
Manchester Barton 29/04/2025 EGCB
Seated statue of a woman, identified as a portrait of Helena (249-329 CE), the mother of the Roman emperor Constantine, derived from a Greek work from the 5th century BCE.
The elegant female figure is seated on a chair with a high back and curved feet (cathedra), with a soft cushion that overflows the sides; she has both legs stretched forward with the right foot crossed over the left, both wearing simple sandals and resting on a low suppedaneum. She is dressed in an Attic (Greek) peplos and a himation, and appears comfortably supported in a position of calm rest, with her torso turned three-quarters towards her left, her left arm resting on the back of the chair, her elbow stretched back and her hand loosely resting on her lap.
The body of the statue is based on a Greek prototype from the third quarter of the 5th century BCE depicting the goddess Aphrodite, and can probably be attributed to Calamis or Phidias and originally located in the sanctuary of the goddess on the northern slopes of the Acropolis in Athens. This type, known through eleven replicas (including one in the Naples Archaeological Museum), was highly appreciated in Roman times for the depiction of iconic statues, evidently because of the pose that expresses both majestic solemnity and calmness, virtues appropriate for the female relatives of emperors or high-ranking figures. The intended view of the Capitoline statue was the frontal one, since the back is barely finished.
The head appears to be worked separately and shows inconsistencies and indecisions in the treatment of the ears, not completely finished, and of the hairstyle, in particular at the top, on the nape and on the neck, which contrast with the accurate execution of the body. The hair is divided centrally by a parting and is arranged in wavy locks that converge towards the ears and are gathered at the back in a double flat skein encircling the head, which descends in a braid at the sides of the neck. The facial planes are shaded and rounded, the chin is protruding, the mouth is small with thin and tight lips, the sharp and pronounced nose is individually characterized by an accentuated hump, the cheekbones are high and protruding, the eyes with the iris summarily indicated and the sunken pupil and with the barely visible eyelids have the gaze turned upwards, the forehead is low and marked by a central wrinkle. These features, due to affinity with the images reproduced on coins, in particular in the bronze medallion of Nicomedia in the British Museum, have allowed Raissa Calza to propose the identification with Helena, mother of Constantine, later unanimously accepted.
However, some questions remain. The identity of the marble of the body and the head leads to the belief that the portrait of Helena was reworked on an older face belonging to the same statue, although there is no lack of hypotheses to the contrary (von Heintze). Some chippings along the edge of the dress around the neck suggest that the head was removed and then replaced for the reworking (Arata), an operation that was certainly risky and unnecessary. The head appears slightly smaller and in the occipital area it was completed with parts of the hair worked separately, probably in stucco, and joined with pins to the original head, which evidently did not have enough material to create the complex hairstyle of the emperor's mother. It has been argued that the head had a diadem (contrary to Wegner), which became a custom for imperial female portraits starting from the first decades of the 4th century, but there are no certain traces of its presence, similar to the statue of Helen preserved in the Uffizi.
While the identification of the character originally depicted in the statue with a princess of the Antonine age seems to be now certain (Arata: Faustina Minor or Lucilla; Varner: Lucilla), by analogy with other similar statues taken from the same prototype, the occasion of the new Constantinian dedication remains uncertain (324, the year of the conferral of the title of Augusta, 326, the year of the celebration of the vicennalia of Constantine, or after his death?) and the meaning of the choice of the reused subject.
-- Claudio Parisi Presicce
Marble, reign of Constantine (320-325 CE). Formerly at the Vatican, gift from pope Pius V, 1566.
Musei Vaticani, Palazzo Nuovo, Rome (S 496)
Sarcophagus of Helena (Constantine's mother), 329 C.E., red Egyptian porphyry, 2.42 x 2.68 x 1.84 m (Pio-Clementine Museum, Musei vaticani)
Sarcophagus of Helena (Constantine's mother), 329 C.E., red Egyptian porphyry, 2.42 x 2.68 x 1.84 m (Pio-Clementine Museum, Musei vaticani)
Sarcophagus of Constantina (Constantine's daughter), 354 C.E., red Egyptian porphyry, 2.25 x 2.33 x 1.55 m (originally in what is now Santa Costanza, currently in the Pio-Clementine Museum, Musei vaticani)
Sarcophagus of Constantina (Constantine's daughter), 354 C.E., red Egyptian porphyry, 2.25 x 2.33 x 1.55 m (originally in what is now Santa Costanza, currently in the Pio-Clementine Museum, Musei vaticani)
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Ava Jhamin For
TAYLOR DESIGNS
"Devotion Set"
Make everyday Valentines Day with the Devotion Set from Taylor Designs.
This beautiful lace bra and panty set is just beyond sexy. A great addtion to any woman lingerie drawer.
Lace cami and panty can be work separate.
Bodies:
LaraX
Legacy
Perky
Reborn
Waifu
Main Store:
marketplace.secondlife.com/en-US/stores/229623
Facebook
www.facebook.com/powens75
Flickr Taylor Designs www.flickr.com/groups/14825306@N20/pool/
Ava Jhamin For
TAYLOR DESIGNS
"Devotion Set"
Make everyday Valentines Day with the Devotion Set from Taylor Designs.
This beautiful lace bra and panty set is just beyond sexy. A great addtion to any woman lingerie drawer.
Lace cami and panty can be work separate.
Bodies:
LaraX
Legacy
Perky
Reborn
Waifu
Main Store:
marketplace.secondlife.com/en-US/stores/229623
Facebook
www.facebook.com/powens75
Flickr Taylor Designs www.flickr.com/groups/14825306@N20/pool/
Ava Jhamin For
TAYLOR DESIGNS
"Devotion Set"
Make everyday Valentines Day with the Devotion Set from Taylor Designs.
This beautiful lace bra and panty set is just beyond sexy. A great addtion to any woman lingerie drawer.
Lace cami and panty can be work separate.
Bodies:
LaraX
Legacy
Perky
Reborn
Waifu
Main Store:
marketplace.secondlife.com/en-US/stores/229623
Facebook
www.facebook.com/powens75
Flickr Taylor Designs www.flickr.com/groups/14825306@N20/pool/
